Shenyang central temple

Central temple

synonym

Shenyang central temple generally refers to the central temple

The central temple, located between the Forbidden City and the middle street, is a famous building in the central block of the ancient city of Shenyang in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Since the Qing Dynasty, there have been many legends about this temple among the people in Shenyang City, and the legend that Guan Gong escorted the emperor in the central temple has been widely spread. The central temple also provides for the God of the earth and the God of the mountain, and there are many popular stories among the people.

On December 5, 2016, the National Tourism Administration announced that the central temple in Shenyang, Liaoning Province, was warned.

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The central temple is the smallest temple in Shenyang, covering an area of only half an mu. But because it is located in the north of Dazheng Hall of Shenyang Forbidden City, it is the center of Shenyang ancient city in Ming and Qing Dynasties, so the central temple has become the symbol of the center of Shenyang ancient city, and its position is very important.

brief introduction

The central temple, located between the Forbidden City and the middle street of Shenyang, is a famous landmark in the central seat of the ancient city of Shenyang in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Some say it is the "Taiji" in the center of the four elephants and eight trigrams of Shenyang City, while others say it is one of the "Liangyi" in the Taiji diagram, that is, one eye of "Yinyang fish".

Since the Qing Dynasty, people in Shenyang City have many legends about this temple. But more widely spread is the legend of Guan Gong and other gods in the central temple.

Moreover, since the central temple is the closest building to the Forbidden City, there are many legends related to the emperors of the Qing Dynasty.

history

According to Mr. Qi Shoucheng, an expert on Shenyang historical architecture, the central temple was built in 1388 ad. when the Qing dynasty built the Shenyang Palace Museum, they did not demolish the temple out of respect for Guan Yu. Instead, they handed down the imperial edict to "respect three feet each" for Guan Gong, land, Mountain God, City God, and God of wealth. They specially left a space of ten to five feet outside the red wall of the Dazheng hall for the central temple. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, the temple was gradually abandoned, and there was no trace of other gods except Guan Gong. In 1938, under the name of the temple's disrepair and disorder, the chamber of Commerce of Fengtian city called together 50 or 60 major business houses in the middle street to raise funds to repair the temple. The project was started in July 1938, which lasted two months and cost 2500 yuan. At the end of the project, one side of the stele was set up to record the merits and virtues of each family and the whole process of construction. In 1966, the temple was changed into a residential building; in 1995, the "East Asia square" was built, and all the Ming Dynasty cross shaped streets around the central temple were changed into squares. Only through the efforts of relevant parties can the central temple be preserved. In 1998, it was renovated with the approval of Shenyang cultural relics administration department, and a blue wall was built around it and opened to the outside world.

Name and origin

As we all know, the Manchu people who founded the Qing Dynasty were a warrior nation famous for horse riding and hunting, while Guan Yu was a "martial saint" worshipped by many Chinese nationalities, including Manchu people. Some people also called him the "God of war" of China. Therefore, the history of Manchu people worshiping Guan Gong was much earlier than that of Confucius, the sage of literature.

At present, there is an old Guandi temple in the city of Hetu ala mountain in Xinbin, not far from the "Hangong yamen" in Nurhachi.

Local people say that this temple was built by Laohan king in the capital city shortly after he started his army. Later, because he was invincible and won every victory, he thought that it was the God of Guan Gong who protected him, so he built Guandi Temple wherever he moved his capital.

After moving to Shenyang City in 1625, Jin chose the most central position in the city, offered the statue of "Lord Guan" respectfully in the temple, and asked someone to write the four characters of "loyalty and righteousness for thousands of years" and hung a gold plaque in the temple. People also called the temple "loyalty and righteousness for thousands of years". Later, laohanwang thought that there should be a plaque with the name of the temple in front of the temple, so he asked someone to write it.

Because the place where the plaque was hung was too small to write down the five characters of "loyalty and righteousness Qianqiu Temple", it was simply written as the plaque of "loyalty Temple". After hanging it up, laohanwang thought that this name could make the officials loyal and patriotic like Guan Yu. It was also a good idea, and he praised it.

In the past, the plaque of the temple was written vertically. Some people read the word "Zhong" as "Zhong Xin", but it just corresponds to its location. Later, people called this Guandi Temple "Zhong Xin Temple". Although this story is a legend, it is reasonable and convincing, and it has become a source of the name of the central temple.

Open space in front of the gate

Now when people come to the central temple, they will notice a phenomenon, that is, although the temple is very close to the Forbidden City, the northern wall of the temple is still deliberately turned here, leaving a space for the temple gate outside the red wall behind the Dazheng hall. It is said that when the Emperor built the Forbidden City, he not only did not tear down the small temple close to the Imperial Palace, but also passed down the imperial edict out of respect for the gods in the temple In addition to the original street in front of the temple, the present open space is formed.

The legend of Guan Yu's escort

Among the ordinary people in Shenyang, there is a legend that Guan Yu in the temple escorted the emperor.

It is said that one year after the Qing Dynasty entered the pass, Emperor Qianlong came to Shengjing (Shenyang) to visit the mausoleum and lived in the Palace Museum of Shenyang. For several days, he found that when he went to the court and returned to the palace, there was a sound of horse hooves behind him. Looking back, he found nothing. He was very puzzled. After careful thinking, he thought it might be his "real dragon emperor" who returned to his hometown and lived in the ancestral palace If the gods protect them secretly, they decide to prove it.

When he returned to the palace that night, he heard the sound of horses' hooves again. Without looking back, Qianlong stopped and asked, "who is the escort?" he only heard a voice behind him answering, "second younger brother Yunchang.". After hearing this, Qianlong suddenly realized that he was reincarnated by Liu Bei. Guan Yu (Guan Yunchang), the sworn brother, was riding a red rabbit horse to protect him. Then he thought that Guan Yu had become a God. He must know where Zhang Fei was, so he decided to try again. So he asked, "where is the third brother?" There is a voice behind the answer to "guard Liaoyang.". After hearing this, Qianlong was both surprised and happy. After returning to the palace, he immediately summoned the Liaoyang general to Shenyang to see him.

But he said that the Liaoyang general was an upright and upright general. He often offended his superiors because he couldn't flatter and flatter. When the emperor visited Shengjing, he learned that a relative of the emperor was taking advantage of the opportunity to exploit the common people. He was writing memorials at home all night to report the corrupt official to the emperor. All of a sudden, I heard that Qianlong announced that he was going to the palace overnight. I mistakenly thought that he was a treacherous official. The villain told me that he wanted to kill him by the emperor's hand. I thought that even if I died, I would die clear and innocent. I couldn't let the villain succeed. So I wrote a memorial and asked my family to submit it to the emperor. I took poison and killed myself at home.

After receiving the memorial, Qianlong felt sorry and ordered to investigate and punish the corrupt officials. Before driving back to Beijing, he went to the central temple to offer incense to Guan Gong to thank him for his kindness, and ordered Shengjing officials to rebuild the temple and offer sacrifices on time.

Whether or not Guan Gong in the central temple really showed his spirit, the incense here became more and more popular after Qianlong. The reason is that the shops in the middle street are prosperous and come to the temple to burn incense.

In the past, people not only respected Guan Gong as a "martial saint", but also regarded him as a "God of wealth" (the God of wealth is Zhao Gongming).

This is because in the past, all the serious traders believed that "the old and the young are honest and honest", and stressed "the loyalty of the rivers and lakes". Guan Gong in the Three Kingdoms is famous for his loyalty and righteousness. Therefore, the merchants respected him as an immortal who can bring good reputation to them, and gradually gained the reputation of "the God of wealth and martial arts".

Central street is the most prosperous commercial street in Shenyang from the Ming Dynasty to the flourishing age of the Qing Dynasty. It is full of shops and prosperous businesses. The natural incense in front of the throne of Lord Guan in the central temple is flourishing day by day.

Posterity evaluation

In fact, whether the above legend is true or not, the custom of respecting Guan Gong was very popular in Shenyang in the Qing Dynasty. According to the records of Shenyang county annals in the early years of the Republic of China, there were 43 imperial temples within 50 li of Shenyang City, more than any other type of temples, most of which were established in the Qing Dynasty.

In the ninth year of Shunzhi (1652), the emperor also specially passed an imperial edict that Guan Yu was granted the title of "emperor Guansheng of loyalty and righteousness". In the third year of Yongzheng (1725), the emperor also passed an imperial edict that Guan Yu's father was Cheng Zhonggong, his grandfather was Yuchang Gong, and his great grandfather was Guangzhao Gong.

It can be seen that the worship of Guan Yu at that time was a top-down social fashion. From the Qing Dynasty to the present, it has gone through a hundred years of vicissitudes. Today, the oldest temple dedicated to Guan Yu in Shenyang is probably only the central temple. This small temple, which carries many historical facts and legends, is not only an important coordinate of the ancient city of Ming and Qing Dynasties, but also helps us learn more about the rich folk culture of Shenyang in the past.

Other legends

As for why the central temple still provides the land God and the mountain god, there are many popular stories among the people.

village god

It is said that after gaining power, Lao Han Wang wanted to build more temples for gods, but there were no other gods except Buddha and Guan Gong. So he sent people to Beijing to ask Emperor Wanli of Ming Dynasty to give him a god statue. The emperor of Ming Dynasty despised Laohan king, so he asked his ministers to choose the most humble God to give him. The ministers picked and picked the local, short and ugly landlords. The people who went to Beijing took the statue back to Shenyang,

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